Door handle assembly



Jan. 4, 1938. J ROETHEL 2,104,403

DOOR HANDLE} ASSEMBLY Filed Aug. 3, 1954 I NV EN TOR.

70/122 RoeiheZ M w U &

- ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 4, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 8' Claims.

This invention relates to door handle assemblies, particularly, althoughnot exclusively, adapted for use on metal doors of automobile bodies, anobject. of the invention being to provide improved means for supportingthe door handle shank, said means presenting an ornamental appearancewhereby the attaching devices for the handle are concealed from theoutside of the door.

A furtherobject is to: provide a door handle assembly adapted to bemounted on a metal door panel in which the rotatable handle shaft is,journalled in a mounting plate secured by screws or other attachingdevices to the outside of the panel, and wherein a snap-on escutcheon isprovided for enclosing the mounting plate and concealing the attachingscrews or other devices, the opposed edge portions of the escutcheon andmounting plate having opposed interlocking portions effective to permitthe escutcheon to be snapped over the mounting plate and releasablylocked thereon, the escutcheon being free from connection with themounting plate on its diameter at right angles to the locking means andbeing contractible in the locality of said disconnected portions topermit expansion on its opposite diameter through said locking meansthereby facilitating the disconnection thereof.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from thefollowing description and appended claims, reference being had to theaccompanying drawing wherein like reference characters designatecorresponding parts in the several views.

In said drawing:

Fig. l is a perspective view of adoor handle assembly embodying theinvention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional View, partly in elevation, taken substantiallythrough lines 22 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view, partly in elevation, taken substantiallythrough lines 3-3 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view showing the attaching plate with theconcealing cap or escutcheon removed.

Before explaining in detail the present invention it is to be understoodthat the invention is not limited in its application to the details ofconstruction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanyingdrawing, since the invention is capable of other embodiments and ofbeing practiced or carried out in various ways. Also it is to beunderstood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is forthe purpose of description and not of limitation, and it is not intendedto limit the invention claimed herein beyond the requirements of theprior art.

Referring now to the drawing, the door handle assembly of the presentinvention is applied or attached to the outer face of a metal door panelIll, having an aperture Illa formed therein. Secured to the panel andsurrounding the aperture lea is a metal attaching plate or bearing blockH, having an aperture Ila. therein which is aligned with the panelaperture Illa. The attaching plate is attached to the face of the panelin any suitable manner, as by means of screw devices I2. A door handle,shown as a whole at E3, has a shank I mounted in the plate II, the shankbeing journalled in the aperture Ma and rotatable o-r oscillatabletherein. The shank is connected with the latch operating mechanism ofthe door (not shown) by means of a square shaft 2| which projectsinwardly through the apertures Ha and "la and through a washer 20. Thedoor handle is held yieldably in position by means of a coil springsurrounding the shaft 2| and'having its opposite ends engaging bearingcups or members 23, the whole being held in the positions shown in Figs.2 and 3 by a pin 24 passing through an aperture or slot in the shaft.

As shown, the attaching plate or bearing block I I is of 1 oval shape,although it will be understood that this member may be of any otherdesired shape.

The metal concealing cap or escutcheon for the door handle assembly isshown as a whole at [5 and is provided with an aperture ltd throughwhich the shank l4 passes. Ehe escutcheon is shaped to conform generallyto the shape or outline of the attaching plate II and its diameter inone direction is slightly larger than the length or lengthwise dimensionof the plate, as shown at l5b in Fig. 2, this is for a purpose to behereinafter described. The escutcheon is chambered to fit over the plateor block H and has a surrounding flange which covers the side edges orwalls of the plate. The flange on opposite sides is provided withinwardly projecting ribs or projections 16 which may be formed thereinduring the die casting or stamping operation. The ribs on opposite sidesterminate short of the ends of the cap l5 and are adapted to cooperatewith grooves ll formed, in any suitable manner, in the longitudinal sidewalls or edges of the plate. When the cap I5 is slipped over the plate,the ribs l6 snap into place in the grooves 11 and releasably lock theparts together to completely conceal the plate and its attaching screwsI 2, see particularly Fig. 1. As shown, the cooperating ribs and groovesare arcuate. Referring to Fig. 3 it will be seen that the flangeportions in which the ribs I6 are formed, fit the plate and grooves I'lsnugly, whereas, by reference to Fig. 2, it will be seen that there is aslight clearance at I5b between the flange and the end. walls of theplate ll. That is to say, there is a clearance between portions of thecooperating cap and plate which are located at right angles to thecooperating locking ribs 56 and grooves H. Thus, by applying a tool tothe ends of the capto contract or compress the flange at the pointsifib, the right angularly disposed portions of the flange will be sprungoutwardly to release the ribs from the grooves to permit the escutcheonto. be released from the plate and moved forwardly over the handle shankto uncover the plate and give access to the attaching screws I2.

It will be understood that the cap or escutcheon is made of relativelystiff metal having only sufiicient flexibility or springiness to permitit to be sprung to bring the locking members It and I! into cooperatingrelation to effect a snap-on fit against unauthorized release or removaland to permit the escutcheon to be contracted or sprung to permitrelease when and if it is necessary to gain access to the attachingscrews. Once the escutcheon is snapped into locking relation with theplate ll by the application of a slight pressure to its top face, itcannot be removed without the use of a special tool for the purpose.When in place, the escutcheon or plate has the appearance of a fixed orintegral part of the door handle assembly, and by completely concealingthe heads of the screws or other plate attaching devices, it provides anattractive and tamper-proof construction.

I claim:

1. In a door handle assembly for a vehicle door having a metal panelprovided with an aperture, a metal mounting plate located on the outerface of the door and having an aperture adapted to receive a door handleshank mounted to rotate within said apertures, and a chambered metalescutcheon slidably mounted on said shank toentirely enclose saidmounting plate and having its marginal edges fitting over the edgesthereof, adjacent edges of the mounting plate and escutcheon havingmeans for releasably locking the escutcheon to the mounting plate, saidmeans comprising cooperating projections and recesses at opposite sidesthereof, the escutcheon having a greater diameter than the mountingplate at right angles to said locking means to permit contraction onsaid diameter to facilitate the release of the parts.

2. In a door handle assembly for a door having a metal panel providedwith an aperture, a metal mounting plate having an aperture adapted toreceive a door handle shank mounted to rotate within said apertures, anda chambered metal escutcheon slidably mounted on said shank to entirelyenclose said mounting plate and having its marginal edges fitting overthe edges thereof, adjacent edges of the mounting plate and escutcheonhaving means for releasably locking the escutcheon to the mountingplate, said means comprising two arcuate ribs and grooves at oppositesides thereof, the escutcheon having a greater diameter than themounting plate at right angles to said arcuate ribs and grooves topermit contraction on said diameter to facilitate the release of theparts.

3. A door handle escutcheon plate assembly for a metal door panelprovided with an aperture, comprising a metal mounting plate having anaperture aligned with the aperture in the panel, attaching means forsecuring the plate to the panel and removable from the exterior thereof,and a metal escutcheon adapted to entirely enclose the mounting plateand shaped to fit over the same, the opposite edge portions of theescutcheon and mounting plate having cooperating arcuate ribs andgrooves for spring connecting them together, the escutcheon beinggreater in diameter than the mounting plate in a direction at rightangles to said ribs and grooves and being contractible on said diameterto facilitate disconnection of the ribs and grooves and the withdrawalof the escutcheon from the mounting plate.

4. An escutcheon assembly for application to a surface having an openingtherein, comprising a block having an aperture and shaped so that thedistance from one point on one edge of the block to a second point onthe opposite edge of the block is less than the overall diameter of theblock further out from said surface than said points, means for securingthe block to the surface, and a cover for said block having a resilientskirt extending around the sides of the block, touching said points andspaced from the block at other points.

5. A device for surrounding the place Where a movable member projectsout through an opening in a surface comprising a block, means to securethe block to the surface, the block having an aperture through which themovable member projects and having a shoulder on one side facing thesurface, a cover for said block having a resilient skirt extendingaround the sides of the block, the skirt of the cover having a shoulderat one place on the inside facing away from the surface on which theblock is mounted and engaging the shoulder on the side of the block andbeing spaced from the side of the block at a place one quarter of theway around the block from the center of the engaging shoulders.

6. An escutcheon plate assembly for a rotatable door handle comprisingan oval block secured to the door and having an aperturethrcugh whichthe shank of the handle projects, the block having shoulders on itsedges at the ends of its short diameter, said shoulders facing thesurface of the door, an escutcheon plate covering the block and havingan aperture through which the shank of the handle projects, saidescutcheon plate having a resilient oval skirt projecting down aroundthe oval block to the surface of the door and having shoulders facingout from said surface and engaging the shoulders on the block, at leastone end of the skirt being spaced from the edge of the block.

7. An escutcheon assembly for application to a surface comprising ablock fastened fiat on the surface, the block having shoulders facingthe surface of the door and extending along two portions of the edge ofthe block on opposite sides, and an oval cover for the block,non-rotatable on the block, having a resilient oval skirt extending tothe surface of the door, said skirt having interior shoulders on itsless curved portions, said interior shoulders facing away from thesurface of the door and engaging the shoulders 0n the block, the moresharply curved portions of said skirt being spaced from said block.

8. In a door handle, an escutcheon comprising an elliptical escutcheonsupport adapted to be secured to a door by screws, and an ellipticalescutcheon cap covering said inner escutcheon member and concealing theheads of the securing screws and resiliently engaging said support tohold the parts in assembled relation, the cap being adapted to bedeformed out of engagement with said support by pressing on oppositepoints of the periphery thereof.

JOHN H. ROETHEL.

